GCT Refund Process for CUSO-VSO Volunteers
on George Hamilton (Jamaica), 13/May/2011 23:58, 34 days ago
Heads-UpThis blog is currently a work in progress. It will disappear from time to time as it gets updated. When it reappears it will look different, may have additional information, etc. It's not an official document, but eventually, when the English version is satisfactory, I will add a French translation and may come looking for help.After July 1, 2011, even with the English version, do not hesitate to email me at mwapoleni@gmail.com if you believe I have missed something important.I will try to add a picture or two to break up the detailed information, so please email me any digital photos you have of the tax office buildings or other relevant topics. There are two things that you must bear in mind before you send me anything, (1) I used to work for the Canada Revenue Agency so my sense of humor will be very restrained in the tax field, and (2) the Jamaican tax officials are employed by our host country and must be treated with full respect.Thank youGeorge HamiltonIntroductionThe intention of this blog is to show CUSO-VSO volunteers how to file Jamaican General Consumption Tax (GCT) refund claims. For simplicity, you may think of the Jamaican GCT as being fairly similar to the Canadian GST and HST. Please note that the information is current as of mid-2011 and may become out of date. For example the location of offices, phone numbers and what is taxable, etc. may change.Is Claiming a GCT refund worthwhile?This is up to you. The inconveniences of claiming include that you will have to scotch tape the originals of EVERY receipt you claim on letter size paper and cross reference them into your claim details listing. Other problems include that some vendors will be extremely reluctant to give you a receipt, then there is the delay in getting the refunds and that you will have to keep reminding tax officials to keep working on your claim over a number of months, no matter how simple you originally thought your claim was.The benefits are monetary and the GCT rate is high. For example if you bought a new computer for $1,000 US, say, then you could get back 17.5% x $1,000 US if the GCT is charged extra on that amount. Obviously, each one of us has a different cut-off point for determining whether or not to claim a particular item. When you start to look at grocery bills, they will be for smaller totals and include many items that are not subject to GCT.Blog Technical MattersThese affect you so don't skip this section.Outside blog programs, graphics usually fill the entire computer screen but blogs compress pictures to just a small part of the screen, so I trust you can read my exhibits. You will have to create your own Excel files because they do not work in the Blogger I am using. I have provided text version of what the Excel files would look like.Are you eligible to claim GCT refunds?This is the key question. The CUSO-VSO office will arrange to get you authorized in conjunction with your work visa. You should end up with a letter like the one appearing below. If you do not have such a letter, then stop reading right now and contact the CUSO-VSO office to see what information you need to provide it with. Maybe you might not be eligible? We are in a legally complex area, so do not assume that you are eligible - take the local advice from the CUSO-VSO office.ATTACH A PHOTOCOPY OF YOUR VERSION OF THIS LETTER TO EACH CLAIM TO EXPEDITE PROCESSING.Where are the people you want to contact?Assuming you are eligible and have your letter shown above, then it is worthwhile to know where you have to go to file paperwork, get checks, ask questions, etc. This is important because you will currently interact with two different tax locations who provide two different services - you will have to contact both of them.I included a map because the tax offices are quite a distance from the usual areas where CUSO-VSO volunteers might go. One point of reference is Coronation Market where you might have gone - it's over to the left edge of the map. This will give you an approximate indication of where you will be heading with your GCT claims.In the map above, you will be going to the GCT office first. Do not even think about the Internal Revenue office at the bottom of King Street until you receive your approval letter from GCT and the date specified in their letter has passed.You will complete this form for the GCT claim and send or take it to the GCT office. Remember, if you don't apply, then you won't get anything.It is a fairly simple form, but you will want to complete it accurately to avoid processing delays.Identify yourself in boxes 1 to 4, noting the different way of formatting dates in box 2.Boxes 5 and 6 come from your spreadsheet totals - see below.Make box 7 the same as box 6, the GCT checker will change the amount, if necessary.Box 8 is the certification section. You will tick box C because that is the one that applies to you.In the remaining lines print your name, then identify yourself as a CUSO-VSO volunteer on the title line, then sign and date it.Details listing. This is where you list the invoices and receipts that you are claiming and support the totals in boxes 5, 6 and 7 on the Application for Refund form. If you use a spreadsheet, then it will do all the additions for you., however make it look as close to the original form as possible so that there is no doubt about the purpose of the spread sheet.[The original form - document to be scanned in][I noticed a formatting problem in Blogger the does not like blanks. Any time you see a this symbol "~" it's just my way of showing a visible space that Blogger have removed]A text reproduction of an Excel version:~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~ ~ ~ Schedule of Purchases to be Attached to~ ~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~ Application for Refund~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~ ~ ~ (General Consumption Tax)[PUT YOUR NAME AND THE REFERENCE # THAT YOU WILL EVENTUALLY GET HERE JUST IN CASE THE DETAILS LISTING GETS SEPARATED FROM THE APPLICATION FORM]~~~~~Date of~ Tax Invoice~ Description ~~~~~~~~~~~Price~~~~~ ActualGCT # Purchase~~ Nbr~~~~~of Purchase~Supplier~ Before Tax~~~Tax Paid123etc.Totals [going to boxes 5, 6,& 7]~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ XXXXX~~~ XXXXXXIt's apparently that simple, however many of the words are not 100% obvious and you may go wrong. For example a "Tax Invoice" is a very rare thing and has a half page definition that is too detailed to go into.I will give you a quick worked example so you can get an idea of the terminology used and how you can translate it into everyday English. After that I have attached a photocopy of the details that went into creating the figures on the formSchedule of Purchases to be Attached toApplication for Refund(General Consumption Tax)[GEORGE HAMILTON REF # 1679]~~~~~Date of~ Tax Invoice~ Description ~~~~~~~~~~~Price~~~~~ ActualGCT # Purchase~~ Nbr~~~~~of Purchase~Supplier~ Before Tax~~~Tax Paid1~~~ 03/05/11~~~ 2732~~~ Taxi~~~~~ JUTA taxi~~~~~ 2,314.89~405.112~~~ 03/05/11~~~ 862701~ Groceries~ Sov. Supermkt~~ 3,207.34~ 444.033~~~ 03/05/11~~~ 79~~~~ Coffee~~~~~ Cafe Blue~~~~~ 170.21~~~ 29.794~~~ 03/05/11~~~ No #~~~Burger~~~~~~ Deliworks~~~ 659.57 ~~115.43etc.Totals [going to boxes 5, 6,& 7] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~6,352.01~ 994.36A few points will be noticed by the reader:The first column is simply the row in which the item claimed appears and is in no way related to a GCT number.The next four columns are fairly clearThe 5th column may contain the amount before GCT if it is not shown on the invoice - you would use a rate of 100.0/117.5 to calculate this.The 6th column is the GCT claimed and is not necessarily 17.5% of the previous column as the supermarket example shows.A less obvious point is that these give examples of what I claimed. What I receive in a few months will not necessarily be the same amounts.I am not sure what the legal basis for this is, butIF THE GCT OFFICE DISALLOWS OR CHANGES THE AMOUNT YOU CLAIMED, YOU CANNOT RECLAIM THE AMOUNT IN FUTURE EVEN IF YOU GET BETTER DOCUMENTATION - A REAL TAX INVOICE FOR EXAMPLE.Again, I do not know the legal reason for this, but you circle the information on the receipts that ends up on your detailed listing. It should expedite your claim making information more easy to find.Note for George - Documents to be shuffled around to different locations:Rough Text Notes To Be Merged in Later from a Word Documentv\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} .shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);}Normal0falsefalsefalsefalseEN-CAX-NONEX-NONEPlease note the results letter.You are still subject to additional audit even if your claim hasbeen approved and paid.This is what has worked for me.At least one volunteer has told me that their claim will notbe paid unless the CUSO-VSO manager signs it. This may simply be due to differences inpractices by GCT office clerks.If you include the Authority to Claim letter, I'm sure there isno need for anybody other than yourself to sign the claim.The Permanent Secretary of theMinistry of Labour and Social Security has said in writing that you are OK to claim.Be careful how you prepare your GCTclaim and keep copies of what you hand over toanybody in case it gets lost. I tend not to copy smaller receipts, but you can scan them ontoyour hard drive if you want.Minor cultural difference - the floors in buildings are numbered English-style.You walk intothe ground floor of a building, so to get to the first floor you have to go up one set of steps.You may be surprised how long it takes for your claim to be processed at the GCT office -allow 2 to 3 months.Then once the GCT office has finished with the claim and you have yourresults letter, you will start a new process with the Inland Revenue office, but at least youhave cleared the first hurdle.GCT is pretty similar to the Canadian GST or HST although many packaged items are subject totax too in Jamaica.Utility bills that I have not claimed, but you could.The rate of GCT on cell phones is 25% rather than 17.5%, however to get a Digicel GCT invoiceI believe you have to go to the NCB bank headquarters on Old Hope Road.The internet billsdo not help you.Other mobile phones companies may have the same issues, maybe.You do not get refunded for the small scratch update cards that you can get to top up cellphones although you are billed GCT for them.There is GCT on electricity consumption over a certain amount each month, however if youare a tenant directly paying for JPS electricity you will note that the bill might not be in yourname so you cannot claim GCT back.However, you can get authorization from yourlandlord authorizing you to claim the GCT back.Discuss with him or her.***BLANK GCT DETAILS TABYou do not need to use the official manual form.This spreadsheet has all the information you will need.After your first claim, you will receive your reference number.It does not hurt to have it on each form you submit.Center the following notes on your worksheet:Schedule of Purchases to be Attached ToApplication for Refund(General Consumption Tax)PUT YOUR NAME HERE AND ALSO YOURREFERENCE NUMBER ???? WHEN YOU GET IT.***